The best of Li'l Abner

Cartoonist Al Capp presents 26 of his favorite sequences from his cartoon strip.

The Best of Li'l Abner

Al Capp

HOLT. RINEHART AND WINSTON

William K. Fowlemouth, the organizer, T. J. Trashbloom, the ecologist, the Misses McFertile and McFruitful, welfare mothers, the Reverend Utter Chaos and a huge supporting cast of Cappian characters populate these funny, hardhitting stories by America's best-known comic strip artist. Al Capp's satiric survey of the liberal establishment covers the worlds of politics, entertainment, family life, and education. As the author says in THE HARDHAT'S BEDTIME STORY BOOK: "Some of your best friends may secretly be practicing conservatism...."

The Hardhat's Bedtime Story Book

Harper&Row

Hardhat's Bedtime Story Book

This book contains a complete set of the 1940 daily strips. The first Hollywood adaptation of Li'l Abner was made in 1940. Newspaper columnist Michael Price and the late film historian George Turner provide a fascinating history of this largely forgotten movie, complete with 9 rare stills and lobby cards. The back cover features the very rare Li'l Abner movie poster and another lobby card in full color. Buster Keaton plays Lonesome Polecat in the film but the once hugely popular silent star was in such professional disgrace by 1940 that he was not even listed among the seven acting credits on the film poster! A sidebar provides backgrounds on the producer, director and actors. A second introduction by editor Dave Schreiner provides a political and historical context for the strip itself in 1940. The year begins with Capp's parody of John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath (also made into a movie this year). Dogpatch is wiped out by turnip termites, so our favorite hillbillies are lured to Boston to pick oranges in winter! Li'l Abner also learns how to woo "Dogpatch style" from Adam Lazonga, whom Schreiner speculates is based on controversial philosopher and free thinker Bertrand Russell or possibly playwright George Bernard Shaw. In another episode Mammy and Pappy Yokum get a 100 year-old letter and rush off to the California gold rush. Earthquake McGoon is introduced in the daily strip this year, as is the popular phrase, "As any fool kin plainly see!" Plus the annual Sadie Hawkins Day Race. The cover is drawn by Peter Poplaski. Published in 1989 by Kitchen Sink Press ( KSP ) 12 x 9 horizontal format 176 pages ISBN #0-87816-059-0 soft cover Mint / Never Read Condition.

Li'l Abner: Dailies, Vol. 6: 1940

Reference

Kitchen Sink Press

Description from back cover: On Monday, August 13, 1934, eight newspapers commenced printing an obscure comic strip by an equally obscure cartoonist about a family of poor hillbillies living in Kentucky. Before the cartoonist retired with his creation 43 later, Al Capp's Li'l Abner had become internationally famous, syndicated in over 900 newspapers worldwide and avidly followed by millions. Over the years, Capp and Li'L Abner were twin centers of both outrage and delight. Capp's trenchant outlook and sharp wit found voice in his comic strip and he seldom lacked an opinion about any facet of the national scene. John Steinbeck called him the greatest satirist since Laurence Sterne and recommended that he be considered for a Nobel Prize in literature. Others recommended that Capp be boiled in oil. Through all of it, Capp remained true to his personal vision of what Li'l Abner should be, and in the process, made it the greatest comic strip of all time. Meet Moonbeam McSwine, lovely daughter of Moonshine McSwine. Her favorite people are pigs. She's incredibly lazy. And in 1941, her father plotted to get her married to Abner Yokum. Meet the Flying Avenger, radio superhero to millions, who looks suspiciously like said Abner Yokum. Meet Big Stanislouse, brutal gangster, and Bet-a-Million Bashby, frustrated gambler. Meet Dorothy Lamour, Barbara Stanwyck, and the niece of Saide Hawkins, five times removed.

Li'l Abner: Dailies, Vol. 7: 1941

Arts & Photography

Individual Artists

Kitchen Sink Pr

In 1945, World War II ended and a new age dawned. In Li'l Abner, Al Capp moved along with everyone else into this age, guiding vbhis immensely popular adventure strip into satire. At the top of his artistic and storytelling form, Capp was more than ready to greet the postwar era. In this book you'll meet Orson Waggon (Orson Welles), boy radio genius, who has a sensational idea: kill somebody during an actual broadcast --a somebody named Abner Yokum. Also in this volume: Timberwolf McHowl, Moonbeam McSwine (who prefers the company of pigs to men) gets a bath; Fleabrain, Lonesome Polecat, Barbara Seville and another wild Sadie Hawkins Day Race. Orson Welles parody and more! Introduction by Madeline Gardner, Al Capp's sister (with early family photos) and another fine intro by Dave Schreiner putting the year in historic context. Published in 1991 by Kitchen Sink Press ( KSP ) 12 x 9 horizontal format 168 pages ISBN #0-87816-083-3 Mint / Never Read Condition.

Li'l Abner: Dailies, Vol. 11: 1945

Comics & Graphic Novels

Comic Strips

In 1946 Li'l Abner meets the beautiful but carnivorous Wolf Gal, who has her eyes (and stomach) on our hero. But even she is overshadowed this year by one of the strip's most memorable events ever. The most famous resident of hapless Lower Slobbovia is Lena the Hyena, the "ugliest woman in the world." She is so hideous that savvy cartoonist Al Capp cannot bear to draw her image himself. In an extraordinarily successful publicity stunt he enlisted readers to send in their drawings of Lena. And some 500,000 readers from 381 subscribing newspapers responded! To add to the public's attention, Capp persuaded actor Boris Karloff, surrealist Salvador Dali and crooner Frank Sinatra to join him in judging the finalists. The winner turned out to be Basil Wolverton, who became a famous cartoonist in his own right. The amazing background of this stunt is detailed in two fully illustrated introductions (which include pictures of the Lena runners-up). Other characters featured this year: Joe Btfsplk (the jinx with the cloud hanging over his head), Moonbeam McSwine, The Skraggs and Available Jones. Published in 1991 by Kitchen Sink Press ( KSP ) 12 x 9 horizontal format 168 pages ISBN #0-87816-092-2 Mint / Never Read Condition.

Li'l Abner: Dailies, Vol. 12: 1946

Kitchen Sink Pr (Nrt)

Meet Fearless Fosdick - the ideel of Li'l Abner and every other red-blooded American boy. He's tough, he's violent, he's not too bright, and thanks to Al Capp, he bears more than a passing resemblance to Chester Gould's Dick Tracy. Inside you'll find five of Fosdick's greatest cases: the Case of the Poisoned Beans, the Atom Bum, Anyface, Sidney the Crooked Parrot, and the Case of the Chippendale Chair. You'll also read Dick Tracy writer Max Allan Collins' tribute to the greatest detective of them all... Fearless Fosdick!

Fearless Fosdick

LIL ABNER MEETS THE SCHMOO - SHMOO LI L ABNER: THE 1947 DAILIES. Volume 14 (of 27) by AL CAPP (Softcover) The most popular of Capp's hundreds of distinctive characters was the Shmoo. This lovable little creature loved mankind so much that it would sacrifice itself and turn into a ham steak, a gallon of milk or a dozen eggs: whatever its owner desired. Its whiskers made nice toothpicks and its eyes could be recycled as buttons. Most important, a Shmoo could reproduce faster than a rabbit. Thus, if you had one Shmoo, you were set. You didn't need to work at all. Thus did the apparent book for mankind become its curse and the powers that be decreed that all Shmoos must be exterminated. Capp's insightful morality tale was so popular that it spawned an unprecedented merchandising bonanza. Two introductions, by David Schreiner and by science fiction writer Harlan Ellison, are illustrated with various Shmoo toys manufactured. The large back cover photograph shows a selection of Shmoo merchandise in color from the Denis Kitchen collection. Also featured in this volume: Flying Sausages (parody of "Flying Saucers," a term first coined a few months earlier; Fearless Fosdick, Nightmare Alice, Salomey, Adam Lazonga, Moonbeam McSwine, Cousin Weak-Eyes and Marryin' Sam. See also our Shmoo Facts Sheet for some amazing statistics about this character's popularity. Published in 1998 by Kitchen Sink Press ( KSP ) 2nd printing 12 x 9 horizontal format - 176 pages ISBN #0-87816-116-3

Lil Abner: Meets the Shmoo, 1948, Vol. 14

Capp, Al

Li'l Abner: Dailies, Vol. 15: 1949

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Al Capp. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Al Capp